Shaoting Song , Yihan Gong , Tiequan Li , Xinle Peng , Qiong Da
{"title":"Rural policies, regional integration, and tourism growth: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment of the national tourism poverty alleviation demonstration project","authors":"Shaoting Song , Yihan Gong , Tiequan Li , Xinle Peng , Qiong Da","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104411","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104411","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Against the backdrop of ongoing implementation of the rural revitalization strategy and regional coordinated development policies, rural tourism is regarded as a crucial pathway for promoting rural economic growth and narrowing regional development disparities. Based on the pilot policy of the “National Tourism Poverty Alleviation Demonstration Project,” this paper constructs an interaction model between rural tourism policies and regional integration. Using panel data from multiple regions in China spanning 2009 to 2023, it empirically analyzes the impact mechanisms of rural tourism policies and regional integration on tourism growth, and further explores the moderating effects and heterogeneity under different fiscal conditions. The results indicate that: (1) Rural tourism policies significantly promote regional tourism growth by effectively stimulating the development of tourism resources and enhancing reception capacity; (2) The level of regional integration itself also exerts a significant positive effect on tourism growth; (3) Regional integration plays an important moderating role between rural tourism policies and tourism growth—where higher levels of integration are associated with more pronounced policy effects; (4) The moderating effect exhibits significant heterogeneity under different levels of general public budget expenditures, with regions possessing higher budget expenditures demonstrating stronger policy support and synergy, thereby enabling more effective policy outcomes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104411"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144634578","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yangfan Cao , Wei Chong Choo , Bolaji Tunde Matemilola
{"title":"Value-at-risk forecasting- based on textual information and a hybrid deep learning-based approach","authors":"Yangfan Cao , Wei Chong Choo , Bolaji Tunde Matemilola","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104403","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104403","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The recent rise in deep learning and natural language processing (NLP) applications has notably improved productivity across different fields. This research aims to refine Value-at-Risk (VaR) model accuracy by leveraging text mining and deep learning. It first uses NLP to analyze online news sentiments, integrating these as variables to boost stock market risk forecasts and assess their effect on VaR accuracy. Additionally, the study combines predictions from four unique Generalized AutoRegressive Conditional Heteroskedasticity (GARCH)-type models into advanced Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) and Convolutional Neural Network (CNN)-LSTM models to see if this boosts VaR precision. It also explores how textual data impacts VaR predictions over short and longer periods, using 7 and 20-day rolling windows. The analysis, using S&P500 (SPY), Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI), and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) data from 2012 to 2023 alongside news headlines, tests these approaches. The results confirm that incorporating textual information into the VaR model enhances its forecasting accuracy, highlighting the benefits of applying deep learning techniques in this process.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104403"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144604172","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tianqi Gan , Kangning Zhang , Jianguo Du , Liangliang Liu
{"title":"Is post-event accountability effective-analysis of the effect and mechanism of environmental auditing on corporate ESG impacts","authors":"Tianqi Gan , Kangning Zhang , Jianguo Du , Liangliang Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104392","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104392","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the face of increasingly severe environmental protection pressures, enterprises need to balance the relationship between economic pressure and environmental responsibility. As an ex-post environmental policy, environmental auditing may beKey regulatory role in realizing this balance, which comprehensively supervises the production, operation and emission performance of enterprises, aims to assess and ensure the effective implementation of ecological protection measures, and becomes a special way of “post-event accountability” in the process of corporate environmental management. Based on the panel data of A-share listed companies from 2009 to 2021, the article analyzes the impact of environmental auditing on corporate ESG performance and its internal mechanism using a multi-period double-difference model.The results of the study show that: firstly, environmental auditing can help enterprises improve their ESG performance and make the environmental governance method of “post-event accountability” practicable; Secondly, environmental auditing has a positive impact on corporate ESG through inhibition, regulation and supervision effects, i.e., it can inhibit corporate “greenwashing” behavior and enhance the authenticity of environmental information disclosure; regulate corporate management and reduce the frequency of violations; strengthen public supervision duties and prompt the media to pay more attention to corporate environmental performance; and lastly, environmental auditing has a more obvious effect on the enhancement of ESG performance of state-owned enterprises and small-scale enterprises. The findings of this paper enrich the green governance effect of eco-auditing and expand the research on the impact of corporate ESG performance.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104392"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144653784","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Big data and Sustainability: Exploring the role of data element allocation in enhancing corporate performance","authors":"Zhengang Zhang, Gailei He, Yushu Lu","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104402","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104402","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Amid various environmental and social crises, addressing how to guide enterprises toward sustainable development effectively is imperative. Using the establishment of the National Big Data Comprehensive Experimental Zones (NBDC zones) as a quasi-natural experiment, this study explores the causal effect and mechanism of data element allocation (DEA) on corporate sustainability performance (SDP). Based on panel data from China's listed manufacturing companies between 2010 and 2021 and employing difference-in-differences (DID) model, the findings reveal that data elements significantly enhance SDP, with notable heterogeneity across firms and regions. These conclusions remain robust after a series of robustness checks. Mechanism analysis indicates that data elements indirectly influence SDP by enhancing resource allocation capabilities and strengthening green innovation capacities. This research contributes to understanding how data elements improve SDP, providing policy insights for government agencies to leverage big data in advancing corporate sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104402"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144653785","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Effects of public services use on the sense of acquisition among low-income groups: Mediating effect of physical health","authors":"Liuzhan Jia","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104408","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104408","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the influence mechanism of public services use on low-income groups' sense of acquisition and verifies the mediating effect of physical health. The research also provides suggestions for promoting low-income groups' sense of acquisition. Using the Chinese General Social Survey, data were collected from 585 low-income respondents across China, and the research employs reliability and validity analyses and regression analysis to test the hypotheses. The regression coefficient of public services use's influence on the sense of acquisition is 0.21 (p < 0.01) and that of physical health is 0.22 (p < 0.01). Physical health has a 19.05 % meditating effect size in the total effect, with a 0.02–0.06 confidence interval. This study demonstrates that physical health has a partial mediating role in shaping the dynamics between public services use and the sense of acquisition, particularly for low-income groups. The research conclusion contributes to the government to improve the living conditions and physical health of low-income group, and interpretation the mechanism of how the public services use to influence the psychological feelings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104408"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144632506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Industrial convergence, market structure, and consumption upgrading","authors":"Xiuzhen Huo, Lingfang Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104388","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104388","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study empirically examines the impact of industrial convergence on consumption upgrading and its underlying mechanisms. The findings reveal that industrial convergence significantly promotes regional consumption upgrading, with market structure and digital economy development reinforcing this positive effect. Further analysis indicates that the enhancement effect is particularly pronounced in regions with strong innovation capabilities and advanced data integration capacity. Additionally, the differential impacts of consumption tax policies and local government intervention intensity collectively shape the heterogeneous effects of industrial convergence across provinces.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104388"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144653792","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Research on the impact of corporate financialization on debt financing level: From the dual perspectives of risk-taking and earnings management","authors":"Qing Zhao , Yihan Gan , Lijun Song , Suqing Fan","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104328","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104328","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the impact of corporate financialization on firms' debt financing decisions using a panel dataset of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2007 to 2023. Employing firm- and year-fixed effects regression models, we find that higher financial asset holdings are significantly associated with lower levels of debt financing. Robustness is ensured through various tests, including lagged variable models, propensity score matching, the Heckman two-step correction, and alternative fixed effect specifications. Mechanism analysis reveals that financialization reduces debt usage by increasing firms' risk-taking behavior and decreasing earnings management. Moreover, heterogeneity analysis shows that the effect is more pronounced among state-owned enterprises and firms receiving higher levels of external monitoring, such as analyst coverage. These findings suggest that financialization not only alters firms’ financial structures but also reshapes internal governance and risk preferences.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104328"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144679235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"China's outward foreign direct investment, environmental protection, and green technology progress","authors":"Weiyi Cai, Sijia Qin, Xiaoqi Meng","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104384","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104384","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We select panel data from 30 provinces and regions in China (except Tibet) from 2011 to 2019 as research samples and empirically test the influence mechanism of OFDI on sulfur dioxide (SO<sub>2</sub>) emissions in China and the interregional spatial spillover effect by employing the mediation effect model and the spatial spillover model, respectively. We find that OFDI (1) has a significant negative spatial spillover effect on China's SO<sub>2</sub> emissions; (2) affects the SO<sub>2</sub> emissions by the scale effect, the composition effect and the technique effect; (3) inhibits SO<sub>2</sub> emissions in the geographically proximate neighboring regions as well as in regions with a similar level of economic development by enhancing the progress of green technology in the latter regions. Finally, we put forward policy recommendations based on our findings, intending to provide a theoretical basis and practical countermeasures for China to expand its Opening-up Policy further while considering environmental governance.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104384"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144632956","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tianqing Chen , Liangang Zhang , Mei Wen , Wei Yuan , Wenyue Lin
{"title":"Can the development of agricultural insurance promote the resilience of agricultural economy? The dynamic mechanisms of the digital economy development","authors":"Tianqing Chen , Liangang Zhang , Mei Wen , Wei Yuan , Wenyue Lin","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104386","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104386","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper relies on provincial panel data from China spanning 2009 to 2023 to verify whether the development of agricultural insurance can promote agricultural economic resilience and analyzes the dynamic mechanisms of the development of the digital economy. Empirical analysis results indicate that the development of agricultural insurance significantly enhances agricultural economic resilience; the digital economy plays a significant moderating role in the relationship between the development of agricultural insurance and agricultural economic resilience; the impact of agricultural insurance development on agricultural economic resilience exhibits heterogeneity across different regions; and there exists a threshold effect of population size on the impact of agricultural insurance development on agricultural economic resilience.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104386"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144595470","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Matthias Horn , Andreas Oehler , Amal Dabbous , Alexandre Croutzet
{"title":"The relation between environmental awareness and stock returns","authors":"Matthias Horn , Andreas Oehler , Amal Dabbous , Alexandre Croutzet","doi":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104383","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.iref.2025.104383","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We analyze the green stock premium and assess if a measure of global environmental awareness can forecast the returns of stocks listed in the MSCI North America All Cap Index from 2010 to 2019. The E-pillar score of Sustainalytics’ ESG rating is used as a proxy for companies' environmental risk. We find that stocks with a higher environmental risk show higher returns and alphas, on average. When environmental awareness among investors increases stock returns decrease, on average. However, stocks of more environmentally friendly companies suffer less during such periods. Therefore, stocks with lower environmental risk reduce the differences in returns and alphas or even show higher returns and alphas than stocks with higher environmental risk.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":14444,"journal":{"name":"International Review of Economics & Finance","volume":"103 ","pages":"Article 104383"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144632501","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}